The Adventures of Luke Skywalker
by Adama's Shadow
Summary: A retelling of the adventures of Luke Skywalker, AU Volume 1 covers A New Hope


**The Adventures of Luke Skywalker **

**Volume 1: A New Hope**

**Author's Note:** Star Wars AU. This will follow the events of the Original Trilogy, but the timeline will be shifted back by one year at the beginning, Luke and Leia are 18, not 19. Several other changes will be made as we go along. This is Luke Skywalker's story the way I would have told it. And, Obi-Wan better reflects the guy who defeated General Grievous and Anakin Skywalker in lightsaber combat. I always figured if he was Luke's bodyguard, he would have kept himself much more fit, and kept his skills sharp. Volume 1 covers the events of A New Hope. I won't cover every tiny event, but the highlights will be seen here.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Star Wars, George Lucas does, that lucky SOB. I only claim the plot of this story, and any original characters created by me. No profit sought here, just feedback. Read and enjoy!

****

Tatooine was a desolate world, baked under the merciless gaze of twin suns. Harsh deserts and vicious predators made for a very hard living for those who called this dusty planet home. The nearly total lack of government supervision meant that it was a perfect place for criminals and those wishing to vanish from sight.

On a moisture farm, not far from the village of Anchorhead, a blonde haired young man was heading towards his speeder when a gruff voice cried out.

"Luke!"

18 year old Luke Skywalker sighed, and turned at the sound of his Uncle's voice.

"Yes, Uncle Owen?" He called back the older man.

"I need you get over to the south range! The vaporators need adjusting! And you had better hurry, we can't afford to have them go offline!"

"I'm on my way Uncle Owen" Luke sighed, but knew there was no way out of yet another day of tedious labor, repairing and checking the vaporators on the moisture farm. It wasn't that the work was especially difficult, Luke had always had a gift for fixing things, a trait he shared with his father according Aunt Beru, one of the few things he knew about the man, it was just that the work was terribly BORING. Luke walked into the garage and grabbed his tool kit and hold-out blaster, then walked out and climbed into his speeder and headed off toward the south range of the farm.

****

A discrete distance away, a weathered man in brown robes watched the scene without comment, unnoticed by the boy or his uncle. When the young man climbed into his speeder and left, the man waited a few moments, and then quietly climbed aboard his speeder bike and followed, tracking the boy through the Force.

****

Luke pulled his speeder to a stop near the first vaporator and climbed out. He secured the blaster to his belt and grabbed his toolkit and headed over to the vaporator. He set down his kit, opened the access panel on the vaporator and began tinkering. Unknown to the young man, he was being watched by more than one set of eyes, and not all of them had his best interests at heart.

****

The weathered man pulled his bike to a stop, climbed off and pulled out his macrobinoculars and continued to watch the young boy. How much like his father he looks, the man thought for the thousandth time. Then, he felt a disturbance in the Force. Someone else was also watching the boy, and not with friendly intent. He quickly checked his belt, his lightsaber was still clipped there. Something was about to happen, and he needed to be ready to move quickly. He moved over and climbed back aboard his speeder bike and continued to watch the boy and listen to the Force, prepared to move in an instant.

****

Luke completed the adjustment on the vaporator and closed the access panel, he gathered up his tools and stood. He froze, suddenly something felt very wrong. His hand closed instinctively around the blaster and he drew it out and checked its charge. Then he heard a buzzing noise, the sound of a speeder bike being pushed very hard. As he turned towards the sound he heard something move near him and quickly turned seeing a man in black robes standing there with a silver cylinder in his black gloved hand, his face shrouded. Bringing the blaster up, Luke fired as he heard a curious snap-hiss noise and gleaming red blade sprang into existence. The blade intercepted the shots turning them away with ease and Luke quickly backed away, continuing to shoot though he knew it was probably hopeless. Then sound of the speeder grew to a fever pitch and he heard another snap-hiss and a man in brown robes jumped off the moving speeder, flipping himself into the path of the black clad warrior, his blue blade intercepting the red blade as it swung in to kill the young farmer. Luke quickly got up and moved behind the vaporator and watched, enthralled despite his fear at the sight of these two men. Both moved with unnatural quickness, their movements a dance of deadly beauty, their bright blades darting, twirling, probing for a weakness as each tried to destroy the other. Finally with a great crash the two crossed blades and the man in black's hood fell away, he looked fairly normal, maybe a few years older than Luke himself, but his eyes were an unnatural yellow orange color and his face was twisted into an angry grimace.

"So this is where you've been hiding old man!" The black clad warrior smirked, "You were trying to shield the boy I take it? You failed, my master detected him and sent me to destroy him. He will never become a Jedi!"

The two sprang apart and the black clad warrior flipped into the air, his momentum carrying him towards Luke. The man in brown still said nothing, merely leapt ahead of the man in black and again intercepted his attempted attack against Luke. Luke backed away, and debated whether he could get to his speeder, but decided to simply stay put and keep the vaporator between himself and the battle.

The two warriors clashed, spun and clashed again, neither of them giving ground. Finally the man in brown seemed to weaken, and the man in black smiled triumphantly and spun to his left blocking the blue blade over his shoulder and as he came around brought his blade around and in for the killing stroke, but his target was gone. The brown clad warrior had dropped and rolled and came up behind the black clad warrior and stabbed him through his chest from behind. The man looked down in shock at the blue blade sticking out of his chest, and fell down dead. The man in brown deactivated his lightsaber and ran toward Luke and Force-shielded them both as the dark warrior exploded in a brilliant flash of purplish Dark Side energy. The blast knocked them both down, but they had survived. The weathered man heaved a sigh of relief as he got to his feet and looked at the blackened scar where his opponent had been. Not bad for an old man he thought. He turned towards Luke, and he offered the boy a hand, helping him get to his feet.

"Easy son, you've had quite a day." The man had a surprisingly gentle voice, and Luke peered at him, suddenly recognizing him. His rugged, weather beaten features were those of someone he definitely knew.

"Ben? Ben Kenobi?"

The man nodded, and put a hand on the boy's shoulder, "you showed great courage young Luke. Not many would stand toe to toe with a Dark Jedi."

"A Dark Jedi, but why would he be after me?"

"You are very important Luke, and the time has come for you to prepare for your destiny. Your Aunt and Uncle were adamant that you not be a part of the Jedi way, but the Emperor has found you, and you will need training if you are to survive. Come, we must go and speak with them, then we will make a stop by my place after which, we will be leaving this world." Ben led the way to Luke's speeder, and they climbed in and headed for Luke's home. Despite the events of the afternoon, or perhaps because of them, he couldn't help but be excited; he was leaving this rotten world at last!

****

Along the way, Ben spoke to him of the Force, and of the Jedi. Told him about his father, Anakin Skywalker, and how he was one of the greatest Jedi in history. Luke desperately wanted to learn the ways of the Force and become a Jedi as his father had been, and Ben obviously was.

As they pulled up to the farm, Luke knew something was wrong. There was smoke coming out of the house. Luke jumped out of the speeder and ran towards the house, Ben moving in right beside him. They stopped as they reached the entrance and saw the burned bodies of Owen and Beru. Luke fell to his knees and tears running unnoticed down his cheeks, his world falling in on him. Ben put a hand on his shoulder and Luke suddenly felt some of the weight seem to lift. He looked up, and the older man was gazing at him with kind eyes.

"There's nothing left here for me anymore. I'll come with you and learn to be a Jedi." Luke stood, wiped the tears away. The older man put an arm around his shoulder and nodded.

"Go inside, and gather whatever survived that you want to take with you, and I will take care of them."

Luke nodded, and went inside.

A short time later they stood near the freshly filled in graves of his aunt and uncle, right next to his grandmother Shmi's grave. Luke bowed his head, and silently apologized to them, he knew he hadn't been an easy child, but he had loved them very much, and hoped that they had known that. He felt Ben's hand on his shoulder, "They knew. Now, come along Luke, we must go, those responsible could return at any time."

Luke nodded, and they climbed into the speeder and headed toward Ben's home.

****

As they drove, Ben told him stories of the Clone Wars, and the battles that he and Anakin had fought in together as partners. Luke listened raptly, the idea that his father was a great war hero and a Jedi Knight felt much more right than the tale his Aunt and Uncle had told him that Anakin had been the navigator on a freighter and had died in a crash. When they arrived, Luke and Ben went inside and Ben began hurriedly going through the chests and boxes within. Quickly, he had gathered a set of extra robes for himself, a few books, some remotes and cylinder that looked very similar to the lightsaber at Ben's belt. Packing everything else into a small bag, Ben picked up the cylinder and brought it over to Luke and handed it to him.

"Your father's lightsaber. This was the weapon of a Jedi Knight. Not as clumsy, or random as a blaster, a more elegant weapon, from a more civilized age."

Luke took the cylinder and held it upright and pressed the activation stud and the lightsaber ignited with the now familiar snap hiss sound. The blade was blue, much like Ben's. Luke waved the blade experimentally from side to side; testing the feel of it, and listening to it hum through the air. He pressed the stud again and deactivated the blade as Ben moved away and opened another chest. He took out a set of beige robes similar to his own, and a brown cloak and handed them to Luke.

"If you want to train as a Jedi, you may as well look the part," the older man said with a smile. "You can change in the other room."

Luke took the robes and went into the other room. A few minutes later, he stepped back out into the main room dressed as Jedi, the hood of his cloak resting on his shoulders. Ben smiled and nodded, "Now you look civilized, my young friend. We should get moving, we'll head for Mos Eisley. We should be able to find transportation there."

****

**Mos Eisley Cantina**

Luke stood at the bar, trying to be casual even though he was certain half the bar was staring at him. Then someone grabbed him roughly and spun him around. An Aqualish stood there and proceeded to rant at him, but Luke didn't understand him.

"I'm sorry," Luke said. "If this is your spot, I'll move."

"He doesn't like you," another voice said.

Luke turned, the voice belonged to a rather battered looking humanoid, whose face looked like it had been blasted and then ground under someone's boot.

"I'm sorry," Luke stammered, not sure what to do.

"I don't like you either," the being sneered. "You just watch yourself, we're wanted beings. I have the death sentence in 12 systems."

"I'll be careful," Luke said.

"You'll be dead!"

Just then, Ben Kenobi appeared as if from nowhere and put a hand on each of the belligerent aliens' shoulders, a friendly expression on his face. "This one isn't worth the effort," he said. "Come my friends; let me buy you a drink."

The two aliens pulled back after the Aqualish tossed Luke aside, both of them pulling out their blasters, and the friendly expression disappeared from Ben's face and his hand dropped to his lightsaber, as the bartender dropped behind the counter frantically calling out, "No blasters! No blasters!"

The two aliens opened fire and Luke heard the sound of Ben's lightsaber activating. He watched as the blade intersected the blaster bolts from the two aliens, expertly sending them back to their source, and then he spun and moved in quickly making two rapid slicing motions and then he stopped and deactivated his blade. The Aqualish was now short a hand and had a blaster wound in left shoulder. The humanoid was also short a hand, and had a blaster wound in his right leg. Ben calmly clipped his lightsaber to his belt, leaned over the bar and whispered to the bartender for a moment, and then he walked over and helped Luke up. A moment later, a very large hairy humanoid moved to stand beside him.

"Chewbacca here is first mate on a ship that might suit our needs," he said. Then the large humanoid, a Wookiee, Luke thought, led them to a corner booth. A slightly disreputable looking man sat there calmly sipping a drink.

"Nice work there, you're quick for an old fella." The man looked over at the Wookie as he rattled off a series of grunts, growls and barks. "I'm Han Solo, Captain of the Millennium Falcon, Chewie tells me you're looking for passage to the Alderaan system."

"If it's a fast ship."

"Fast? You mean to tell me you never heard of the Millennium Falcon? It's the ship that made the Kessel Run in less than 12 parsecs," Han said with a smug look. Ben looked skeptical, and Luke wasn't sure exactly what a Kessel Run was. "She's fast enough for you old man, what's the cargo?"

"Just passengers, the boy and I, and no questions asked," Ben said quietly.

"You guys on the run from something?"

"Let's just say, we want to avoid any imperial entanglements."

Han leaned forward, "well now, that's the trick ain't it? And it'll cost you extra. Ten thousand, all in advance."

Luke was outraged, "Ten thousand, we could almost buy our own ship for that!"

Han smirked, "Yeah? And who'd fly it kid, you?"

"You bet I could, I'm not such a bad pilot, Ben we don't have to sit here and listen to thi….."

Ben put a hand on Luke's shoulder, interrupting him, "We can give you two thousand now, plus fifteen when we reach Alderaan."

"Seventeen? You got yourself a ship, mister. Docking Bay 94, we can leave whenever you're ready." Han looked over at the door, and his eyebrows went up. "Looks like someone is taking an interest in your handiwork," he said.

Ben casually glanced over his shoulder; two stormtroopers had just walked in. He got to his feet slowly, and marshaled Luke out of the cantina quietly, keeping them in the crowd, and using the Force to sweep their presence from the surface thoughts of the patrons, in effect making them invisible. Once they were outside, he and Luke both raised their hoods and moved off.

He looked over at Luke, "You'll have to sell your speeder."

"That's ok," Luke said. "I'm never coming back to this planet again."

****

**Docking Bay 94**

"Solo!"

Jabba the Hutt undulated his bulk across the ground, moving closer to the Millennium Falcon.

"Solo! Where are you?"

"Right behind you Jabba."

Jabba turned, and sure enough, there was Han Solo, the best smuggler in Jabba's employ, and his Wookiee companion.

"Han my boy, you owe me a lot of money. And I have come to collect."

"Jabba, I just need a little more time, I have a nice easy charter now, it will cover the debt I owe you, plus interest. I just need you to back off for a while so I can finish this job, then you'll get your money."

"Han my boy, you are the best smuggler in my employ, and I will let you have one last chance. But, if you fail to bring me the money this time, I will have to take your ship."

"Over my dead body, Jabba."

"Of course, Han my boy, that is part of the understanding. Are we clear?

Han felt a chill run up his spine, but he showed no sign of it, "Of course Jabba, you'll get your money. Now take your goons and get gone so you don't scare off my customers."

Jabba and his minions made their way out of the docking bay, Han and Chewie watching them carefully. When they were gone, Han turned to his partner, "Let's get the ship ready for lift off Chewie."

The Wookiee grunted an affirmative, and they moved off together.

A short time later, the kid and the old man appeared, and Han went out to meet them.

"What a piece of junk!" The kid stood there, his expression not improving Han's mood. He scowled at the younger man.

"She's got it where it counts Kid; she'll make point five past light speed. Now, if you'll come this way, we're a little rushed." Han turned and led them aboard the ship.

He led them into the cockpit, and they all got settled while Han helped his partner finish the pre-launch checklist. A few moments later, they lifted the ship and headed into orbit. After they had made the transition to light speed, he turn and spoke to them, "It'll take us a few days to get there, I'll show you guys where you'll be sleeping."

An hour later, they were all sitting in the lounge area, Chewie and Han were playing a game, and Ben was instructing Luke in the use of his lightsaber, and some basic Force techniques. Luke was a very quick study, he had already deflected stun bolts from a remote, while wearing a helmet with an opaque blast shield. This had opened him up, allowing him to access the Force, and now Ben was teaching him more.

"What is the Force?" Luke looked at his mentor expectantly.

"The Force is an energy field made up of all living things, it surrounds us, penetrates us and binds the universe together. Jedi can tap into this energy to gain knowledge and for defense of themselves and others. You have only experienced the slightest fraction of your potential. Come, let us try again. Close your eyes."

Luke complied, and Ben continued, "Now, stretch out with your feelings. See things through the Force. You should be able to sense the life around you."

Luke stretched out, and suddenly, he COULD feel something. He tentatively reached out with the Force, and made contact.

"_Very good, young Luke!"_

Startled, Luke opened his eyes, and realized the presence he had made contact with was Ben. "I could sense your presence, and I could hear you in my mind!"

"You are doing very well my young friend! Now, let's try the lightsaber exercises again."

****

**Alderaan – 3 days later**

The Millennium Falcon burst out of hyperspace and entered the traffic lanes to approach Alderaan. Han entered a coded frequency given to him by Kenobi into the comm., and made contact with the Royal Palace. They cleared them to land immediately.

He brought the ship into the atmosphere, approaching the Royal Palace. He brought them around and touched down easily on the landing platform. Kenobi stepped into the cockpit, "I will return shortly with your money, Captain Solo."

"Sounds fine, me and Chewie will be getting the ship ready to depart."

Kenobi nodded and left. He went to Luke in the lounge area, the young man was practicing his meditation, Kenobi stopped and spoke to him briefly, and then left him to his practice and headed for the boarding ramp.

A few moments later, he walked down the ramp from the ship and headed towards the massive doors that led to the palace. Standing there was a man he had not seen in many years, Bail Organa.

"Master Kenobi, it has been far too long." Bail held out his hand in greeting. Ben took it, and shook his old friend's hand.

"I agree old friend." Kenobi said, "Events have moved forward faster than expected, and we have to alter our plans. The Emperor sent an assassin after Luke. I brought him here with me and I have begun his training."

Organa nodded, "I was actually about to contact you myself. Leia has been captured. She is being held aboard the Emperor's new terror weapon, the Death Star. We must rescue her, she sent me the plans for the station and I have sent them to Alliance Headquarters where they are being analyzed to find a weakness, but if they break her, we'll be routed before we can attack." His face broke into a deeply sad expression,"They have my little girl, Obi-wan."

Ben nodded in sympathy, "Perhaps I can help. I will need your assistance with paying for our ride though. I believe our pilot and his companion would be willing to join in if sufficient monetary incentive were offered."

"Of course, I'll be happy to help. And money is no object, Obi-wan. We're talking about my daughter."

Kenobi nodded, 'Very well. I will need to borrow the droids I left with you. And I will need to speak to Captain Solo, and we will be ready to depart shortly."

Bail nodded, "Of course Obi-wan, whatever you need."

****

"Captain Solo, may I speak with you for a moment?"

Han turned toward the old man, "Sure."

They walked outside the ship and stood looking out at the vast plains of Alderaan. It was lovely.

"I would like to hire you again. This time it will be a rescue mission, there is an element of danger involved. As recompense, your fuel and expenses will be covered, along with any repairs required afterwards and you will be given 50,000 credits upon successful completion of this mission."

Solo's jaw dropped open. Full expenses, fuel, repairs and 50k on top of all that? "Who are we rescuing, and from where?"

"I can't reveal the details of the mission until we are under way Captain Solo."

Solo stood there studying Kenobi and thinking, finally he said, "I need to talk to Chewie, if he agrees, we're in."

Kenobi nodded, 'Of course. When you are ready, I will be with Luke in the Palace training room."

He turned and walked away, collected his young student and headed into the palace. Solo turned, and went to find his partner.

****

Ben stood with Bail Organa watching Luke as he fought against a remote, blocking its bolts with seeming ease. The boy was showing great promise, with training, he might even surpass his father. Ben frowned, he hadn't thought of Anakin in a long while.

Bail leaned in and whispered, "You said he has only been training for a few days?"

Ben nodded, and Bail shook his head in amazement. Just then, Solo walked in and moved over to them. He stepped up beside Kenobi, "Chewie and me are in. When do we leave?"

"Immediately," Kenobi answered. He pulled out the control for the remote and paused it and called out, 'Luke! Time for us to be going."

Luke stopped and deactivated his lightsaber, grabbed the remote and shut it off, and turned to face them and nodded. He walked over and grabbed his towel, wiping the sweat off his brow. Then he collected his cloak and moved over to join them.

Together they all walked out of the training room, and out to the landing platform. Ben shook hands with his friend once more, "Don't worry Bail, we won't let you down."

"I have no doubt of it Master Kenobi. May the Force be with you," Organa said, and moved off and stood by the doors, watching as the Millennium Falcon blasted off, sending his hopes with them. Then he turned and went inside, he had preparations of his own to make. The Death Star attack would need to go forward as soon as possible. He had asked Kenobi to take Leia to Yavin IV once they had escaped, and he was going to be there to meet them.

****

Once they were safely in hyperspace, they all gathered in the Falcon's lounge area, including the team's two new members, R2-D2 and C-3P0, and Ben explained their mission. "We are going to infiltrate an Imperial Space Station and rescue Princess Leia Organa, Bail Organa's daughter. This station is new, and quite large. Getting in will be easy, getting out again will not be. We will allow them to capture the ship, and we will hide in Captain Solo's smuggling compartments. Once they have cleared the ship, a scanning team will come aboard to look for clues. We will take them by surprise, and capture the stormtroopers who will be stationed outside. We will use their uniforms to get the rest of our party safely into the station. Then while the three of you locate and retrieve the Princess, I will disable the tractor beam so we can make our escape." He looked around at all of them, Luke looked eager, Chewbacca thoughtful, and Han very skeptical. "Once we have completed our tasks, we make our way back to the ship and escape the station. Any questions?"

"Just one," Han said,"are you insane?"

Ben just gave him an enigmatic smile as Luke bristled, he held up a hand to forestall the young man's protest, "Not that I know of, though I could ask you the same thing my friend, you did volunteer to come along without knowing anything but the reward."

Han's mouth opened…..and then closed and he looked thoughtful for a moment, then nodded. "Guess you got me there old timer. Alright, you call the shots, but this better work and we better get our reward."

"Not to worry my young friend, you will get your reward," Ben stood, "Now, Chewbacca, Captain Solo, if you will excuse us, I would like to use our transit time to continue training Luke."

Solo and Chewbacca both stood and walked out, and Luke and Ben continued with their training.

****

The Falcon came out of hyperspace near Dantooine, and cruised into the system. A moment later, a TIE fighter shot past them and Han moved to pursue. He glanced back at the old man, who nodded. Fine, Han thought, here we go.

The Falcon's engines surged and she began to close the distance separating her from the TIE, which was approaching a small moon. Just as they were entering weapons range, a shudder went through the ship. Han checked the instruments, and a moment later Chewbacca's frustrated howl confirmed it, they were caught in a tractor beam. A hand closed on his shoulder, and Han looked back.

"Remember my friend, this is part of the plan," Ben smiled. "Let them catch us."

Han fought all his instincts and sat back and let the ship be tractored in. They all got up and headed to the back and opened the smuggling compartments, then they all climbed inside to wait.

****

A stormtrooper stepped up to the Lieutenant in charge of the search detail. "The escape pods have all been jettisoned. It looks like they abandoned ship some time ago. The ship does match the description a vessel suspected in helping two criminals escape from Mos Eisley on Tatooine."

The Lieutenant nodded, "Bring in the scanning crew, I want this shipped searched from top to bottom." With that, he self-importantly turned and walked down the ramp, the stormtroopers trailing him. Two of them took up station out side to wait for the scanning crew.

****

They quietly opened the smuggling compartments and climbed out. When the scanning crew came aboard, they ambushed them and tied them up and stashed them out of sight. Then Han called down to the stormtroopers for help with the equipment. When they came up the ramp, they walked into two stun blasts, and were quickly relieved of their weapons and armor. A moment later, as the Lieutenant who had been in charge of the search called out asking where a "TK-421" was, Luke stepped out, looked up at the viewport and tapped his helmet. The officer nodded acknowledgement and moved off. Luke quickly ran to catch up to his friends. He entered the office to find the droids already hard at work trying to locate the Princess and the control nexus for the tractor beams. Once they had the information, Ben stood and walked over to Luke. He had a feeling that this would be the last time they spoke like this.

"I want to come with you," Luke pleaded.

"We must now follow separate paths my young friend, Captain Solo will need your help to rescue the Princess. We will meet again if the Force wills it," He smiled and clapped the boy on the shoulder. "Remember Luke, the Force will be with you, always." With that, he slipped out and moved off down the corridor. They waited a few moments; and then began their part of the plan, which involved using Chewie to fake a prisoner transfer. The droids left to find another access terminal to monitor the progress of the rescue and assist if needed.

****

They entered the cell block where the Princess was being held, and they were stopped by yet another smug looking, self-important Imperial officer. "Where are you taking this…….thing?"

Luke glanced over at Han for a moment, "Prisoner transfer, from cell block 1138."

"What? I wasn't notified, I'll have to clear it." He turned to move off, just then, Chewie "got loose" and snatched a blaster rifle from Han and began shooting.

"Look out! He's loose," Han shouted, and he and Luke began rapidly shooting every trooper and security device in the room. Once they were done, Han snatched off his helmet and ran over to the console, they looked up the Princess and Luke went to get her while Han answered the alarm.

"Situation normal, everything is fine here," Han said.

"What happened?"

"We had a slight….weapons malfunction, but we have it under control now."

"We're sending someone down!"

"Negative, negative, we have a reactor leak here. Large leak, highly dangerous," Han frowned.

"Who is this, what's your operating….." the voice went dead as Han blasted the console.

"Luke! We're gonna have company!"

Luke moved quickly down the row till he found the cell he was looking for, and then he keyed it open. Inside, a lovely young woman was lying on a very uncomfortable looking metal pallet attached to the wall. She smirked as he walked in.

"Aren't you a little short for a stormtrooper?"

"Huh?" Luke looked down, "Oh, the uniform." He pulled off his helmet, "I'm Luke Skywalker and I'm here to rescue you."

"Who?"

"I'm here to rescue you, I'm came with Ben Kenobi," Luke said.

"General Kenobi? Let's get moving then," she leaped up off the bunk and stepped into the corridor. As Luke followed her out, Han and Chewie were backing rapidly towards them, keeping up a steady stream of suppressing fire towards the stormtroopers who were entering the cell block.

"Can't go that way," Han said.

"Looks like you managed to cut off our only exit," Leia said.

"Maybe you'd prefer it back in your cell your worship," Han smirked.

Leia shook her head, "This is some rescue!"

Han pointed at Luke, "He's the brains sweetheart!"

Leia snatched Luke's blaster and fired a series of shots into a grate across from her blowing a large hole in it.

"What the hell are you doing?" Han asked angrily.

"Somebody has to save our skins, into the garbage chute flyboy," and in she jumped.

Chewbacca stepped over, but balked at the smell.

"Get in there!" Han frowned and fired back at the Imperials, Chewbacca groaned and growled on protest, "I don't care what you smell! Get in there you furry oaf!" He turned and booted Chewbacca who fell through the garbage chute. Then Luke followed, and finally, after a last barrage, Han dove down the chute.

****

Ben ghosted silently through the halls and passageways of the massive station, carefully avoiding its denizens as he made his way to the access junction that would let him disable the tractor beams so the Falcon could escape. He paused momentarily, he felt a disturbance. Yes, no doubt about it. Vader was here. This was an unexpected complication. But, he had a mission to perform. He continued on, carefully dodging that dark presence as it quested after him.

****

Luke pulled out his lightsaber as Han and Leia were arguing vehemently over firing at the magnetically sealed walls, and pushed the blade into the door and carefully cut out an oval big enough for them to pass through. He noticed that they had stopped arguing and smiled to himself as he finished slicing out the door. He stayed to the side as he finished, and warned everyone to step back. Then when he finished, the large price of metal fell into the garbage smasher. They then quickly stepped out and cleaned themselves up in a nearby fresher and then started making their way back to the ship.

****

Ben quietly slipped into the access corridor, and out onto the platform, and circled around the back. He then carefully manipulated the controls, disabling the tractor beams, but in way that would make it difficult to trace and would hopefully give them enough time to escape. He then slipped back out, with the two stormtroopers standing not far away even noticing. He pulled his lightsaber out; he would need it soon he knew. He continued on towards the ship, his only thought now to divert Vader, to allow his young friends time to escape.

****

They had battled several squads of stormtroopers, been separated and somehow found each other and the ship. They stood on an observation platform looking down at it for a moment and made contact with the droids. Then they carefully made their way down and headed to the ship. As they crossed the hangar, Luke noticed an eerily familiar battle going on nearby. Across from him, in another access hallway, he saw Ben battling a massive, dark armored figure with a red lightsaber.

"Ben?" he called.

****

Ben continued along the corridor and was nearly to the ship when he heard the sound of mechanical breathing and spun, activating his lightsaber and easily blocking the red blade slashing towards him.

"Obi-wan, we meet again at last. I see you have kept in practice."

They exchanged a flurry of rapid fire blows, Obi-wan allowing the dark lord to back him towards the hangar, stalling for time.

"Your powers are weak old man, you should not have come."

Ben smirked at Vader's attempt to demoralize him, "You can't win Vader, if you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you can possibly imagine."

"When we last met, I was but a foolish young man, now I am the master."

"Only a master of evil…_Darth_," Ben said, letting Vader's title drip with all the sarcasm he could summon. He could feel the other man's anger building. Good, Ben thought, very good. Stay focused on me old friend, for just a little longer. Ben could feel Luke and the others, they were nearing the ship. All Ben had to do was keep Vader occupied long enough for them to escape.

They continued to fight, and Ben continued to allow himself to be backed toward the hangar, then they were front of the doors, and he noticed a squad of stormtroopers run over, leaving their posts to come to the aid of Vader. He focused back in, he really was getting tired, and Vader didn't seem to be flagging at all, if anything his movements were picking up speed as his anger grew and fueled his movements through the Force.

"Ben?"

Ben turned for a fraction of a second, and smiled at his young student and friend, so much like his father, but so different at the same time. Then he turned back to Vader and brought his saber up in a salute, and felt Vader's saber impact his body…then nothing.

****

Luke watched, horrified as Ben raised his saber and smiled, then as Vader's saber tore through his mentor's body, he screamed.

"NOOOO!" Luke opened fire, his shots uncannily accurate as he instinctively called on the Force, using what Ben had taught him, he quickly mowed down several stormtroopers.

"Luke!" Han called out," Blast the door kid!"

Luke saw the dark armored warrior tapping at Ben's empty cloak with his boot, and in that moment, Luke stretched out with the Force for Ben's lightsaber, and fired at the control panel for the door. Ben's lightsaber leaped off the ground and shot to Luke's hand, narrowly slipping through the blastdoors before they closed, sealing out the dark warrior. Luke held Ben's saber in one hand, and continued shooting with the other as Han and Leia desperately urged him to get aboard, finally, Luke heard a voice he couldn't ignore.

"_Run, Luke! Run!"_

Luke turned and ran up into the Falcon, and as Chewie and Han took the ship out, he and Leia moved into the lounge area, and she tried to console him. He just sat, looking at Ben's lightsaber. Leia reached out and took his hand.

"Luke, there was nothing you could have done."

"I just can't believe he's gone."

A moment later, Han appeared, "We're not out this yet buddy, I need you."

Luke got up and followed Han, climbing into one of the Falcon's gunnery wells as Han took the other, Leia moved into the cockpit with Chewie.

After a brief battle, where Han and Luke each destroyed two TIEs, they made the jump to lightspeed, headed for Yavin, and the Rebellion.

Han leaned back in his chair and favored the Princess with his most charming smile, "Not a bad bit of rescue if I do say so myself."

She shook her head, "They let us go, it's the only explanation for the ease of our escape."

Han sat upright, "Easy? You call that easy?"

"They must be tracking us."

"Not this ship sister."

"In any case, I can only hope that my father was able to get the Death Star plans to the Rebellion. This isn't over yet."

Han frowned, "It is for me sweetheart, I'm not in this for your revolution, I'm in it for the money. I expect what I was promised."

"You needn't worry, if money is all that you love, then that is what you shall receive." She walked to the cockpit exit and spoke to Luke who was walking in," Your friend is quite a mercenary, I wonder if he really cares about anything, or anyone." Then she left.

"I care," Luke whispered.

Han smiled to himself, and then turned to Luke and asked, "She's a bit high strung. Still, she's got spirit. I don't know, what do you think kid? Do you think a Princess and guy like me…."

"NO!" Luke interrupted.

Han just smiled and turned back to his instruments.

Luke quietly left to go practice with his lightsaber.

****

**Yavin System**

A few days later, the Falcon burst into realspace in the Yavin system and began maneuvering towards Yavin 4. Han let the Princess work the communications array to gain them access to the Rebel Stronghold. When they landed near the Massassi Great Temple that served as the rebel base, they were greeted by Bail Organa and General Jan Dodonna. Leia rushed down the ramp and was swept up in a hug by her father. He set her down gently and kissed her forehead, tears running down his face. He turned towards the trio emerging from the ship.

"You all have my eternal gratitude for saving my daughter, she is all I have left," Bail said. Then he noticed the sad turn of Luke's features, and the absence of his old friend. "Master Kenobi?"

Luke shook his head, "He sacrificed himself so that we could escape."

Bail was saddened by the news, "Then he died as he lived his life, a Jedi Knight and hero. And we shall honor him. Luke, if you are interested, I do have some connections," he glanced at Dodonna, "I could put in a good word with the Rebellion for you if you wish."

Luke nodded, "I would appreciate that sir. The Empire must be brought down." The young man looked very determined, almost like he could take on the Empire himself, and he might just be able to, Bail thought, he IS a Skywalker.

Dodonna spoke up, "I understand you are a Jedi?"

Luke shook his head, "I was Ben's apprentice, but I hadn't completed my training."

Dodonna nodded, "We still use the Republic rank conventions, and by those rules, as a Padawan Learner, you are entitled to the rank of Commander. We will need to put you through some training first of course. But that can wait, for now, we'll place you in Red Squadron, they have an opening. Now if you would all follow me?"

Dodonna turned and led them into the massive temple. Luke took it all in, the fighters, the crews working to get them ready for combat. It felt right to be here, in this place, for this fight. They needed him. After a tour of the facility, and the turnover of Han and Chewie's credit chits and arrangement for servicing of the Falcon, they all retired to their rooms. Luke lay in his bunk, unable to sleep, holding Obi-wan's lightsaber in his hands. Then, a ghostly blue light seemed to fill the tiny room, and Luke turned to see a transparent Ben standing there smiling at him. He sat up in shock.

"Ben? But how?"

"The Jedi code says _there is no death, there is only the Force_." Ben moved over and sat on the bunk, "and here I am. I will continue to guide you, and aid you as I am able. Keep my lightsaber with you, my link to it provides an anchor that will allow me to stay in this state longer, and allow me to help you from time to time."

Luke nodded, he had planned on using Ben's lightsaber anyway as a way of maintaining his link to his mentor, this just added incentive. "Can you still train me?"

Ben nodded, "Some, but eventually I will send you to another teacher. But, you must practice and master the basics I have taught you, and learn to keep your calm and not allow your emotions to control you. You will need such control to succeed in your quest to become a Jedi."

Luke nodded, "I will, I swear it. I won't let you down Ben."

Ben smiled, "I know you won't. Now, there is one other thing to discuss. It concerns your family, and I would ask that you go to speak with Bail Organa. He is expecting you." With that, Ben stood, and as he slowly faded away said, "good night Luke, may the Force be with you."

Luke sat there for a while thinking, finally, he got up and clipped Ben's lightsaber to his belt and walked out, in search of Bail Organa.

****

He found him a short time later, standing in the Command center with his daughter. They were studying the strategic disbursement of the rebel fleet. They looked up as he approached. Luke smiled at Leia, and got a smile in return. He looked at Bail.

"I was told I needed to speak with you sir," Luke said a moment later, "by Ben."

Organa nodded, "of course. He told me to expect this, and I suppose it is time. Let's go speak in private, Leia, come with us, this concerns you as well." He turned and started off.

A puzzled Leia looked at Luke and got a shrug in return. Curious, they both followed Bail. He led them to a small, unused conference room and closed the door. He gestured for them both to take a seat and once they had, he took a deep breath.

"I'm not exactly sure where to begin, but…here goes. Luke, you have learned who your father was, his name was Anakin Skywalker, and he was a Jedi General and hero in the Clone Wars. He was a very skilled and powerful Jedi, but he was a bit….unconventional. And he tended to follow his heart, and it sometimes led him into trouble. This is how you came to be born. You see, the Jedi did not allow attachments, so your father was married in secret. Your mother was a very good friend of mine, her name was Padme Amidala, and she was many things, the Queen of Naboo, a Republic Senator, and a fierce warrior. They were both very young, not much older than you are now in fact when they wed. They were married just as the Clone Wars began. Three years later, just before the war ended, your mother discovered she was pregnant. I'm not sure of the actual events in between, but eventually your father died during the Great Jedi Purge, and your mother died giving birth to you on Polis Massa. Obi-wan was with her, and tried to help her, but she had been hurt, and she was heartbroken at the loss of your father. Her last act was to name her children."

Luke leaned forward, having listened raptly to the story of his birth, "Children? You mean?"

Bail nodded, "Yes Luke, you have a sister." He glanced over at Leia, and Luke followed his gaze, and suddenly it was like a light went on in his head. He had a sister! Leia was his sister! He could see it dawn in her eyes too and her face lit up in a brilliant smile. They stood and hugged each other.

Luke pulled away a moment later, an asked," Why were we separated?"

Bail looked sad, "To protect you both from the Emperor. You both have exceptionally high Force potential, as high as your father's and his was higher than any Jedi in recorded history. You would be tempting targets for him, either to kill or enslave. And we were determined to protect you both from that." He stood, "I will leave you two alone for a while, its' not every day you meet your twin for the first time. But, don't' stay up too late. Remember we have the attack briefing at 0800." He walked over and kissed Leia on the forehead, and clapped Luke on the shoulder, and then he left.

"Wow," was all Luke could think to say.

"I know," Leia replied. "It's a lot to process. They told me I was adopted a few years ago, but they asked me to wait till the right time to find out who my birth family was. I guess I know why now."

Luke nodded, and then he brightened a bit," He said that we BOTH have very high Force potential, so you could be a Jedi too! If you want, I could teach what I have learned so far."

Leia smiled at her newly found brother, "I would like that very much. But for now, let's just get to know each a bit ok?"

So, Luke and Leia sat talking to each other, getting to know each other, even though strangely, on some level it felt like they had always known each other.

****

The next morning, the rebel pilots, and interested observers (including a certain Corellian smuggler and his Wookiee friend) gathered for General Dodonna's briefing on the Death Star. As the meeting concluded, an alarm sounded and voice announced over the PA, "The Death Star has entered the system. They will within firing range of Yavin 4 in one hour."

The rebel pilots all raced out of the room, heading for their ships. Along the way, Luke ran into Han and Chewie. They were loading the Falcon, getting ready to leave. He had hoped that Han would stay. He walked over, "So, I guess you got your reward and you're leaving then?"

"That's right, I got some debts to pay off," He stopped and turned to face Luke, "Why don't you come with us? You're pretty good in a fight, we could use you."

"Han, these people are fighting for their survival, and the freedom of the galaxy, they could use a great pilot like you and you're turning your back on them!"

"Look kid, I'm not a fan of the Empire. But, attacking that space station ain't my idea of courage, more like suicide."

Luke frowned and turned to leave, "Well then, take care of yourself, Han. I guess that's what you're best at."

"Hey Luke," Han called, "May the Force be with you." Luke hesitated and turned back for a moment, and then he walked away.

Han resumed loading, and noticed Chewie staring at him.

"What are you looking at? I know what I'm doing."

****

Luke continued on toward his assigned fighter, saddened by the encounter with Han. He noticed Leia up ahead and summoned a smile for his newly discovered sister. She walked over to him, "What is it?"

"It's Han, I really thought he would change his mind."

She shook her head, "He has to follow his own path, no one can choose it for him."

Luke nodded, "I wish Ben were here."

She nodded and gave him a kiss on the cheek. Then she moved off towards the Command Center. Luke continued on to his X-Wing. He noticed that they had already loaded R2 and nodded in satisfaction. He climbed the ladder and smiled at the little droid, "Ok R2?"

The little astromech beeped happily in reply, and Luke nodded, 'Good."

He climbed into the cockpit and took a moment to familiarize himself with the controls, it was a standard Incom layout, very similar to his T-16 he noted. He relaxed and took a deep breath using a Force calming technique Ben had taught him and began his preflight. A few minutes later, he lifted off and joined the wave of starfighters heading out into to space to do battle with the Death Star.

****

Once they cleared the atmosphere they began to orbit the gas giant at the center of the Yavin system and the pilots began checking in.

"Red Five standing by," he called when his turn came, and then busied himself studying his instruments. A few minutes later, the Death Star came into view, every bit as impressive and terrible as he remembered it. The fighters broke off in small groups, and while the X-wings began assaulting the surface defenses, the Y-wings got set to make their runs on the tiny exhaust port that was their only hope to destroy the station.

Luke, along with Biggs Darklighter and Wedge Antilles was sweeping along the surface, destroying gun towers and sensor emplacements as quickly as they came into view. He was quite comfortable with the fighter now and could feel the Force flowing through him as he calmly dodged incoming fire with ease and destroyed his targets. As it turned out, he shared more than a skill for tinkering and a powerful Force potential with his father, he had also gained the Skywalker piloting ability. Biggs and Wedge had to work hard to keep up with the younger man as he swept through the Imperial defense as if it wasn't there.

****

In the Command Center, Leia stood with her father and General Dodonna listening to the battle over the speakers. They had already lost several fighters, and the Death Star was continuing to orbit toward Yavin 4. Leia smiled as she heard Luke's voice, her brother was proving to be a very capable pilot.

Bail looked at her, "Your brother seems to have inherited your fathers piloting talents."

"The Death Star will be in firing range in 30 minutes," called out the sensor operator.

They listened as the Y-wings made their first attempt at the exhaust port. Then they noticed a new set of contact appear on the holomap.

****

"Attention all squadrons, we have a new set of contacts, enemy fighters heading your way."

Luke frowned as he studied his scopes, "My scope is clear, I'm not picking up anything…..wait, I have them visual, coming in at 10 o'clock. Moving to engage!"

Luke brought his fighter around and diverted power to his forward shields. He focused on the fighters using the Force, and could suddenly sense them all. In a moment, Luke began to weave, easily dodging the incoming fire while depressing his trigger at specific moments when the Force indicated he should. Every time he fired, a TIE fighter vanished from the scope. He could sense Biggs and Wedge, they were keeping pace with him, firing at targets of opportunity. As the battle raged on, Luke listened to the first attempt on the exhaust port. The Y-wings suddenly found themselves being pursued by a trio of TIEs and were all destroyed. As Luke continued on, following where the Force led, two more attempts failed. Finally, they had only enough time left for one more run. He listened to his squadron leader as he tried to pull out, and offered to move to cover, but was ordered to get set up for one final run on the port. If he failed, all would be lost. As he formed up with Biggs and Wedge and dove down into the trench, he felt a familiar and comforting presence join him.

"Ben. I'm glad you're here."

"_Of course my young friend, you have done well, the Force has helped you to survive this battle by enabling you to sense where your enemies will be and where their attacks are coming from so you can evade and attack with superior accuracy. The same will apply here, you must simply relax and let the Force guide you."_

"But, everyone is depending on me Ben."

"_You must let go of your conscious worries, stretch out with your feelings, let the Force be your guide. I will be here with you." _

Luke nodded, his face settling into an expression of grim determination, and he opened himself fully to the Force. He swept through the trench, easily evading the surface guns and the obstacles in their path, Biggs and Wedge followed a short distance behind, letting Luke blaze the trail. Finally, the guns fell silent.

"Check your six o'clock guys, those fighters will be coming in hot. Accelerate to maximum speed that should buy us some time."

They both clicked acknowledgements, and they all accelerated. The TIE fighters appeared behind them, and one of them managed to damage Wedge's fighter and he had to pull out, leaving only Biggs to cover for Luke. The TIEs closed in again, and eventually killed Biggs…..leaving only Luke between the rebellion and the Death Star. He fell completely into the Force, with Ben's guidance he managed to avoid every shot. He could feel the dark menace of the pilot in the lead TIE and knew instinctively that it was the dark armored warrior that had slain Ben. He had a very powerful Force presence, and Luke could sense him closing in, eliminating Luke's ability to dodge away. Finally, a shot hit and knocked out R2, but Luke's fighter flew on. Luke was worried, he knew that he couldn't evade the TIE much linger, not long enough to make it to the target anyway. Then, he sensed a familiar and unexpected presence.

A series of laser bolts swept down from above destroying one TIE and causing the other two to collide, one hitting the wall, and the other spinning out into space.

"YAHOOOO!" Came Han's voice over the comm., "you're all clear kid, now blow this thing and let's go home!"

Luke stretched out, and a moment later he felt an urging from the Force and his finger reflexively closed on the trigger firing two proton torpedoes which went into the exhaust port. Luke yanked back on his stick and along with Han, and Wedge, raced away from the Death Star.

A moment later, when the Death Star exploded, Luke, who was still deep in the Force screamed in agony, his anguish communicating itself to Leia on the planet, as a million souls were suddenly snuffed out. He blacked out momentarily, and when he came to, heard a slightly panicked Han on the radio, "Kid, you ok? Come in Luke! Are you ok?"

He wasn't, he had felt the death of everyone on the Death Star. But he said, "I'm ok. Let's get back to base."

****

When they landed, everyone had gathered and were hailing them as heroes. Luke smiled, and put on the front they needed, they had earned it. He knew his role now. The Jedi Hero and rebel warrior. And even though he would forever carry the scar of the Death Star on his soul, he knew that what he had done had been the only action possible. Such a weapon only had one use, to destroy whole worlds, so he would carry the burden. He smiled as Han, Leia and Chewie approached with 3P0 in tow. The techs R2 to be repaired, and Luke let his friends whisk him off into the crowd.

****

Later that night, Luke sat atop the ancient temple, looking up at the night sky. He couldn't sleep and he was having difficulty focusing enough to meditate. He sensed Leia approaching, and a few moments later she stepped out onto the roof and joined him.

"Would you like to talk about it?"

Luke looked at her and shrugged, "I'm not sure I know what to say. I just killed a million people. And I felt them all die Leia, every one of them, through the Force."

She nodded, "I know, I felt some of it too, through you. You were broadcasting very loudly."

Luke shook his head, "I'm sorry."

"Don't be, I wish I could help you, ease your burden. All I can say is that what you did had to be done. That station would have killed billions, or more. It was a thing of pure evil."

He nodded, "I know, but knowing doesn't make it any easier."

She nodded," There's going to be a memorial tomorrow, for the fallen. And we were hoping to have a ceremony to honor our heroes, but I will understand if you don't wish to take part."

"I have to take part Leia. This is my role now. The rebellion needs a hero, and I get to be him. Lucky me."

She looked at him for a moment, "You know what might help?"

He shook his head and she smiled.

"I think we should start my training, if you aren't too busy that is?"

He smiled and shook his head, then he stood and together they went into the Temple to begin Leia's training.

****

The next day, Luke strode into the antechamber of the Great Hall, garbed in Jedi robes of tan, and wearing his dark brown cloak. He wore Ben's lightsaber at his belt. Han was dressed ina white formal shirt, black vest, dark blue jacket and a pair of black pants with Corellian blood stripes on the pant legs, and polished spacer's boots. Chewbacca looked as though he had been thoroughly groomed and wore his nicest bandolier. Wedge was standing there looking very nervous in his beige duty uniform. They all walked over to the massive doors, and when they parted, Luke and Han stepped out first, followed by Wedge and Chewbacca. They walked down an aisle lined on both sides with rebel personnel, all of them cheering. Finally, they reached the dais, where Princess Leia stoof garbed in the formal white livery of an Alderaanian noble, with one very notable addition, her father's lightsaber, given to her by Luke the night before. Her father and General Dodonna, also garbed in their best, stood just above and behind her.

As the Rebel March began to play, Leia placed a medal around each of their necks and favored them all with smiles. Finally, they all turned to face the crowd who broke into thunderous applause. They all knew the war was far from over, but a great battle had been won!

****

**End of Volume 1**

AN: I hope you guys enjoy this version of our classic story. I plan to follow up with a series of shorts set during the three year period between A New Hope and The Empire Strikes Back if I get a positive response to this volume. Remember feedback is welcomed!


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